A Little Gift

It was a beautiful morning. The sky was clear, the air was crisp, and they had only been on the mountain for a day which meant to Jack that they had six more to go. So, all in all, things were looking up.

Ennis had cooked breakfast so Jack was cleaning the dishes in the stream that ran right next to where their camp had been set up. Ennis was off getting the horses ready…they were going up further into the mountains for the day…not to hunt or fish or anything like that…just to be with each other. It had been many months since their last time together so it was kinda like reacquainting…getting the feel of the other all over again.

They rode for most of the morning when they found a little clearing where they could stop to eat some lunch and let the horses graze. A quiet place, a view of the mountains, sounds of life around them.

They had finished lunch and were sitting together against a log in the clearing. Each quiet, each content to be in the other's presence.

These times for Jack were always the happiest. And when he got really happy he always pulled out his harmonica. He had gotten fairly good at it over the years so it didn't sound like just a jumble of noise when he blew on it. He had a small repertoire of songs and tunes that he could play…a couple he had learned just for Ennis.

So he decided that it was time to play.

He reached into his pocket and pulled out his harmonica. He started to play expecting as always the sidelong glances and grunt of exasperation that Ennis always had to express. He didn't fail to get what he had expected.

"Are you ever really gonna learn how to play that thing? Seems all these years and you sound just the same as you always did."

"I think I play pretty damn good, thank you Mr. del Mar."

"Can I see that a sec?"

"What? This? Why would you want to see my harmonica, Ennis?"

"Can I see it for a sec?"

Jack was now a little confused, since Ennis had never before asked to see his harmonica. He usually only complained about the quality of Jack's playing. Jack took a second but then handed it to Ennis.

Ennis calmly looked at it, held it up to the light, looked at it first with only one eye then the other. Jack was watching him not knowing at all what was happening or what Ennis was thinking.

"Ennis?"

Ennis, not looking Jack's way, put the harmonica in his pocket, picked up the whiskey they had been drinking and looked out enjoying the view.

"Ennis, gimme my harmonica." Ennis just ignored Jack.

"Ennis, gimme my harmonica before I kick your ass into next Tuesday." Jack was getting madder and his face was getting red.

Ennis turned to look at Jack with a "you and who else" kinda look. That was it for Jack. He jumped at Ennis and was determined that he would get his harmonica back if he had to beat that man into the ground.

Ennis was of course ready and simply caught Jack in a head lock holding his face pressed into his coat. Jack started to flap around, blindly swinging to catch a piece of Ennis. He was hopelessly trapped. It was quite the comical sight.

As Jack floundered around, his threats and swearing muffled by the coat he was smashed against, Ennis reached over to the saddlebag that he had brought up with him to the log. He reached inside and pulled out a small package, wrapped in plain paper.

He let Jack go so suddenly that Jack fell backwards away from Ennis landing in a heap a few feet away.

"Son of a bitch…get up so I can kick your ass, you flea-bitten piece of crap! I'm gonna beat you till you can't even ask me to stop. Get up, asshole, come on…." Jack was non-stop as he stood up to face Ennis.

Ennis tossed his package at Jack. He fumbled to catch it because he was too mad at Ennis to pay attention to anything else.

"What the fuck is this, Ennis, and you still haven't given me my harmonica back!"

"I was tired of all that caterwauling that you called music."

Jack just stood there, fuming, sputtering, unable to speak any longer. He could only stare at Ennis and then at the package then back at Ennis…

"Well, do I have to open it for ya or can you manage that yourself?"

Jack, still totally lost as to what was going on, looked down at the package. He turned it around once and found that on one surface was his name in Ennis' handwriting. Jack looked up at Ennis…one eyebrow cocked.

Ennis only showed Jack his normal, expressionless look but inwardly he was laughing his ass off.

Removing the paper, Jack found a hinged wooden box. There was a little latch on the front of the box, so Jack unlocked it and…with hands that slightly shook…opened the box. Inside was another harmonica. Not just any harmonica but a very expensive, professional-quality harmonica. The top was inlaid in abalone which gave it a pearl-like quality. Jack's bottom jaw didn't know how to meet up with his top jaw.

He glanced up at Ennis, his eyes beginning to water.

Ennis was looking down because he was finding it hard to keep his feelings from showing. He said very quietly, "Turn it over."

Jack hesitated, his hands visibly shaking now. He turned it over to find engraved on the back:

Jack Twist

No Better Friend Could Any Man Ask For

Ennis del Mar

Tears had started to run down Jack's face falling onto the very sentimental and totally unexpected show of affection that Ennis had just given him. In all his time with Ennis, this was a first and completely unexpected. Jack was at a total loss as to what to do. He could only stare at this gift and marvel at the thoughtfulness from a man he didn't feel capable of such thoughts.

Ennis was now standing a little distance from Jack, head down looking at the ground, at his boots, at the sky, at anything but Jack…his embarrassment plain. He kept thinking of what it had cost him to do this for Jack. How many months he worked at a second job to afford a harmonica of this quality. Finding someone who could engrave it. Someone to build the box to hold it. He didn't think of this as a hardship but as what he had to do so he could see Jack's face when he gave it to him. Everything was worth these few minutes. Ennis looked up at Jack and saw the tears and the shaking hand. He walked over to him and Jack looked up as he was coming.

"Ennis, how…? Why would you do this? I thought…".

"Jack, every time we get together you brought that damn harmonica. It never sounded right after you got thrown and fell on it…you know that. I figure you kept on bringing it and playing just to piss me off." Jack could only look down at his gift.

"So I figure if you want to piss me off, do it with a harmonica that sounds better than that piece of crap you been playing on for so long."

Jack closed his eyes and put his hand to his face. He was moved not so much by the fact that Ennis gave him a gift…never happened before…but by the words inscribed on the back, "No better friend could any man ask for." That was as close to an "I love you," as had ever come from Ennis.

Jack dropped his hand from his face, stepped up to Ennis and placed it on his chest over his heart… just holding it there. Ennis was not immune to all the emotion flowing around and his eyes had also teared up. He placed his hand over Jack's.

Jack looked Ennis in the face but was unable to say anything. Ennis saw his appreciation and the "thank you" that Jack wanted to say. He knew Jack felt things very deeply, though he didn't understand it, and knew that his gift had been accepted with as much feeling as Ennis had put into getting it for him.

Ennis slowly reached over and pulled Jack to him. Jack reached around to hold onto Ennis. They stayed like that for a good while.

Finally Ennis, wiping one tear from his face, said to Jack, "Well, are you just gonna hold onto that thing or are you going to play it?"

Ennis could feel Jack laugh as he held him. Jack pulled away. He took a look up at Ennis and walked a few feet away, his back to Ennis. He wiped his face with his sleeve…looked down at the ground for a minute. Composing himself, still not looking at Ennis, he began to play a few notes. Instantly, he knew this was a quality instrument. The sound was clear, pure, and resonated around him. The difference between his old harmonica and this one was like night and day.

Ennis had, in the meantime, sat down on the log so he could watch Jack. He was ecstatic that Jack liked what he had got for him. He had worried about the inscription…it was not like him to express himself this way and he had actually asked the man who inscribed it to phrase it for him. He hoped that he could get across to Jack some of what he felt for him. Ennis didn't realize just how successful that effort had been.

Jack turned now and started playing one of the songs that Ennis liked, his eyes glittering. He knew what Ennis had been trying to say to him, but couldn't, so would accept this as the best that Ennis could do. This had been a huge effort for Ennis and it wasn't wasted on Jack.

Jack thought that this was a wonderful, magical and amazing day…and he played to show Ennis how he felt about it.